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By Chaz Scoggins, chaz@lowellsun.com

Updated:
03/09/2013 06:57:27 AM EST

UMass Lowell's Josh Holmstrom works the puck to the front of the Providence net as goaltender Jon Gillies and defenseman John Gilmour take note of his progress. Providence won the Hockey East showdown, 3-0. SUN/JULIA MALAKIE

LOWELL -- Hockey East has become Wacky East. Could this be the title no team wants?

Seventh-ranked UMass Lowell, the hottest team in the nation, could have wrapped up first place in Hockey East with a victory over 18th-ranked Providence Friday night in front of an SRO crowd of 6,291 at Tsongas Center.

The River Hawks couldn't do it as the stingy Friars, who have given them headaches the last two winters, including knocking them out in the first round of the Hockey East Tournament last year, skated to a 3-0 triumph and pulled into a tie for the top spot.

New Hampshire could have taken over sole possession of first place with a victory over eighth-place Maine but lost 4-3 and remains a point behind UML and Providence.

Defending Hockey East and national champ Boston College could have made it a three-way tie for first by beating seventh-place Vermont but settled for a 4-4 tie.

So the River Hawks are still in command of their own destiny. A win over the Friars Saturday night in Providence would give them their first title. A loss would give the Friars their first crown. A tie could result in a four-way deadlock for first place depending on what UNH and BC do.

"It's up in the air now, and it's up to us," said UML coach Norm Bazin after three separate seven-game winning streaks ended for the River Hawks. "It's one loss, and we'll put it behind us."

Terminated at seven games were the longest current winning streak in the nation, a seven-game streak against nationally-ranked teams, and a seven-game streak at Tsongas.

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The setback left UML with a 21-10-2 record overall, 15-9-2 in Hockey East. Providence is 15-11-7 overall and 13-7-6 in the league play.

The Friars have shut out the River Hawks three times over the last two seasons, and the River Hawks have gotten just two of 81 shots past goaltender Jon Gillies this winter.

Friday night's game featured a duel between two of the top freshman goalies in the country -- "The two top freshman goalies," Providence coach Nate Leaman stated unequivocally before the game -- and Gillies, who finished with 31 saves, outplayed Connor Hellebuyck to register his fifth shutout of the season.

Hellebuyck, who was burned on two long rebounds left in the slot, suffered his first league defeat after 10 wins and saw his personal 13-game winning streak shattered despite giving up three goals in a game for only the second time since losing his collegiate debut at Denver back in October.

For the first time in eight games the River Hawks found themselves trailing. The Friars scored the only goal of the first period at 12:50, ending a string of 432:49 in which UML was either ahead or tied.

Paul de Jersey took a shot from the right circle off a Providence rush, and Hellebuyck made the initial save. But the long rebound ended up in the slot for Ross Mauermann, and he put the puck into the net for his 12th goal of the season.

The River Hawks had five power plays in the second period, including a two-man advantage for 1:38, but couldn't convert any of them and found themselves trailing 2-0.

Hellebuyck, having problems with rebounds all night, left another long one in the slot at 6:16 of the period and Kevin Hart collected it and fired it home.

"I thought we had good chances. We just didn't stick them in," Bazin lamented. "We had couple opportunities to make it a 2-1 game. But when you score that third goal, it becomes awfully tough."

Defenseman Tom Parisi put the game out of the River Hawks' reach with a power-play goal at 5:49 of the third period, ending a string of 15 straight penalty kills by UML and only the second power-play goal allowed in 28 situations over the last seven games.

But the River Hawks, getting help from the rest of the teams in Wacky East, are still in charge of their own destiny heading into the final game of the regular season.

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